Emma Currie: It's good to be green - baby leeks and bok choy recipes

By Emma Currie/Special to the Sun

Thursday, June 13, 2013

It’s good to be green. With so much precipitation and cooler climates lately, everything in the garden including the grass and weeds is growing at a fast rate of knots. Leafy greens do well in early summer with the slightly cooler nights: kale, green stem bok choy (or pak choi), baby romaine, lolla, rainbow swiss chard, arugula and spinach are all coming up pretty fast. Leafy greens are user friendly, as they can be sautéed, poached, steamed or roasted and their beautiful deep green colors mean a high evidence of vitamin K. Bok Choy is a vegetable sold in either mature or baby form. Mature bok choy has white stems and dark green leaves; baby bok choy is light green in color and is best used in stir fries, braises, soups, stews, and steamed. I particularly like it in a stir fry as it has a light sweet light crispy texture almost like a tender celery. Its fully utilized from stem to leaf which I really enjoy getting out of any vegetable, ‘root to shoot’ eating if you will.

Another spring treat is some fresh English peas in the pod. There is something just lovely about unzipping the pea pod revealing the little green jewels nestled inside. They are best, in my humble opinion, eaten straight out of the pod, however they are great tossed in a salad, pasta or lightly sautéed in butter. The other vegetable I received this week, and was very excited to use, was the baby leek. Wild leeks or ramps are almost past their season now so any opportunity to continue along the same vein with a baby leek is always fun. Baby leeks are pulled in spring time, while their larger more robust cousins are used later in the season. Leeks are in the onion family but have a softer milder flavor than even a green onion when cooked on a low heat slowly. They are more user friendly because of their milder sweeter flavor, and can be eaten raw, but are best cooked slowly, or ‘melted’ . You can even put them on your grill, but the leeks should be blanched first then grilled so they don’t burn and keep their pretty green color. They are awesome in pasta or on flatbreads, in stews or soups. They need to be sliced then washed as the dirt gets in between the leaves. Rinsing them in a colander seems to work the best.

The recipes are very simple today; they let the vegetables stand on their own. There is sometimes nothing prettier than a completely green dish, a real sign that freshness and vitality is here for the summer. This recipe makes a great side dish for some fish or chicken, or if you would like to add other vegetable just serve it with some steamed basmati rice as an entrée.

Sauté the baby leeks until soft or melted, toss in the baby bok choy and immediately add the soy sauce, sambal, orange zest and honey. Let the mixture come to a boil while gently cooking the bok choy, remove immediately and serve.

Tossing simple ingredients with pasta can make a delicious meal. In this recipe we used the same vegetables with the addition of the fresh peas, which adds a pop of sweetness to the dish.

Pasta Verde (makes enough for two)

8oz of cooked pasta, refrigerated.

½ tbsp. of olive oil1 baby leek sliced on the bias thinly

2 head of baby bok choy sliced thinly

½ cup of shelled fresh peas2 tbsp of basil pesto – you can make your own or use a prepared product.

¼ cup of shredded ricotta salata or feta cheese.

salt and pepperHeat the oil and add the leeks, baby bokchoy saute for 2-3 minutes or until softened. Toss in the pesto, peas and then the cooked pasta, coat the pasta until warmed through, season with salt and pepper, serve immediately topped with shaved ricotta salata.

We were always told to eat our greens as a kid, and even now as adults we too often resist the urge to eat them as much as we should. We can take advantage of early leafy greens and ‘baby’ vegetables, which purely by their title are hard to resist. The key is keeping it simple, not overcooking them, and allowing the tender leafy greens to provide the crunch and texture in your next dish. Keep it green this summer, viva la verde! As always, happy eating - cheers, Emma.

----Emma Currie is chef and co-owner of the Brass Cafe in downtown Mt. Pleasant. Hometown Food feedback may be directed to Holly Mahaffey, Morning Sun Community Engagement Producer. She may be reached at 989-779-6063, hmahaffey@michigannewspapers.com, or follow her on Facebook at facebook.com/holly.mahaffey.